July 4 Pacific News Briefs

photo: AFP

Cook Islands – E-cigarettes

A move by the Cook Islands this month to ban the sale of e-cigarettes and vaping products has been delayed until next month.

Health Minister Bob Williams confirmed the extension until August 1, telling reporters cook islands news This is to give businesses more time to sell existing inventory and upgrade customs regulations.

If violated, offenders will be fined NZ$100,000 or imprisoned for up to three months.

Businesses that breach the ban will be fined NZ$1 million.

Solomon Islands – Flights

The Solomon Islands and New Zealand are discussing adding a third weekly flight between the two countries.

Earlier, the two countries signed a revised air transport agreement to strengthen tourism, trade and economic exchanges.

The revised document, which replaces the original 34-year-old agreement, is designed to modernize the aviation industry, including major upgrades to airport infrastructure.

West Papua – Forest

In West Papua, 245,506 hectares of land are being reviewed for recognition as traditional forest land.

Local advocates say their livelihoods depend on traditional forest lands, which they see as a threat from the palm oil industry.

Jubi TV It is reported that about 2.6 million hectares of land in Papua New Guinea are currently occupied by industrial plantation companies.

Nine clans from the Wambenkennimoput tribe in Bowendigore regency in South Papua filed a petition seeking to regain control of indigenous lands.

French Polynesia – Archaeology

Three kilograms of human remains collected during archaeological excavations in the 1970s have been returned from Hawaii to French Polynesia after nearly three years of negotiations.

According to local media reports, the remains are currently kept in the Honolulu Museum.

The pomegranates were collected from gathering centers and other historical sites in the Marquesas, Tuamotu, Raromate, Tahiti and Moorea, said Anatauarii Tamarii, head of the cultural heritage department.

The return was carried out in collaboration between the Bishop’s Museum and the Cultural Heritage Administration.